Live streaming, also known as webcasting, has been a growing format for a number of years, with a rapid growth in popularity and the surrounding technology since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations, presenters and event planners realized that they were able to effectively communicate their messages to widespread audiences from either a central location or distributed locations, and maintain several of the benefits of a live gathering.
Even now, as the restrictions around gathering have mostly lifted, live streaming continues to have a large presence in the event space, either as a standalone format or as part of a hybrid event. We have put together five of the most popular types of live streaming events, showcasing markets that continue to grow and evolve as the messaging and the technology improve.
Town Hall Meetings
Town hall meetings have been popular for their involvement of remote participants for a long period, starting off with phone bridges and evolving into the technologically-advanced format in current use. When it comes to organizations that have a large and distributed workforce, especially ones with a multinational presence, town halls that are live streamed allow the distribution of key and timely messages in real-time, with interactivity through the use of various question-and-answer and polling tools.
Perhaps most importantly, they serve to gather the organization as a whole and let everyone know they are part of a large team, allowing the highlighting of various achievements across the board. When delivered in an interactive video format, the response is better received than an email newsletter. Modern live streaming allows for the use of interactive presentations, virtual award shows, and more elements that can highlight and showcase an organization’s culture and commitment to its members.
Annual General Meetings
Similar to town hall meetings, annual general meetings (AGMs) have included remote participants, though often as passive observers. Often hosted by associations and for companies that have shareholders, AGMs are important meetings that serve as a state of the organization’s position (often managerial and financial). They also allow the organization’s members to ask questions, and most importantly, to vote on key decision points.
The modern live streaming format has key benefits in allowing a much larger participation than an in-person-only meeting would allow. When held as a virtual or hybrid session, the voices of several more members can be heard, and a larger number of votes registered for a given decision, thereby better steering the organization according to member/shareholder wishes. It also allows the use of more complex agenda items such as special elections, limited-segment voting and interactive question periods. Altogether, these can help encourage a highly-involved membership.
Medical and Pharmaceutical Conferences
One of the conference types that has exploded in popularity is the medical/pharmaceutical event. As a knowledge transfer tool, medical professionals and pharmaceutical companies often host symposia, training and discussion sessions that help direct the development of treatment methodologies, drug development, and best practices when it comes to patient care.
Through the shift to a hybrid or virtual format, these conferences are able to include speakers and attendees from multiple locations who may not be able to attend the in-person conference but who could highly benefit from the shared knowledge. As practising medical professionals are generally very busy, this prevents them from having to sacrifice a large amount of time from their practice. This also has a direct benefit for pharmaceutical organizations that develop treatments, as it allows for a direct and more immediate perspective from regions where patient and practitioner feedback may be slower.
Product Launches and Training Sessions
Live streaming has added a significant boom to organizations looking to showcase a product or feature, and to train users or staff. Modern live streaming can go far beyond the slide deck to showcase user-interactive demonstrations, such as clickable websites, rotatable 3D models, and more. Product or feature interaction in this way allows the user or staff member to have a much better understanding of the item.
Weddings and Special Social Events
People enjoy sharing celebrations, and it has previously been difficult to involve those who haven’t been able to travel or attend these celebrations for various reasons (health, travel, cost etc.). The live stream format permits remote attendees to experience several elements of these celebrations, allowing them to be a part of the proceedings, and even interacting when the option is available. Through the use of multiple camera angles, remote-viewer screens for onsite attendees, and other such technologies, both the in-person and virtual experience is enhanced.
While there are several other live streaming events that continue to thrive in the post-pandemic event ecosystem, these ones are among the most notable for their growing popularity and for continually improving how they are delivered. AV-AMERICA has been instrumental in serving in each of these categories, with several clients who have chosen to partner with us in the delivery of their events.
